Northside man to work in Honduras

A YOUNG Glasnevin man will soon travel to one of the most dangerous and deprived countries in the world in order to provide clean water piping systems and tackle preventable water-related illnesses.

Shaun Ryan, a first year Business Studies student in DCU, has already reached his goal of raising €1,725 to fund and partake in the 10-day programme in the rural areas of Honduras.

Ryan will be making the three-stop trip to Central America with a number of DCU students who are all part of a Water/Public Health Brigade with Global Brigades DCU.

The idea to take part in such a scheme did not come out of the blue. When Ryan was in St Aidan’s CBS, Whitehall which is adjacent to DCU, he jumped into the deep end for the very first time.

“The opportunity arose for me to take part in the bi-annual Immersion Programme that would take us to Tanzania to immerse ourselves into the culture, ways of life and offer our assistance in raising funds for local schools, orphanages and the food/water shelter,” Ryan says.

After returning home, Ryan grew the hunger to follow up and go on another charitable adventure similar to the one in Tanzania. 

He will finally get that chance on May 29 when he departs from Ireland and stops in Toronto, Houston and finally in Tegucigalpa, the capital of Honduras.

According to some statistics, Honduras is one of the the most dangerous countries in the world, but when told about this, Ryan doesn’t seem fazed.

“The area of Honduras that we will be travelling to is rural, so the risk involved is considerably less,” he explains. “In addition, there will be security with us to ensure that no problems arise during our time there.

“No matter where you travel to in the world, there is always an element of risk involved and to me this would not have put me off taking part.”

Last month, Ryan held a table quiz in the Tolka Rovers Sports Complex on Griffith Avenue where the aim was to reach his target of over €1,700.

Attended by family, friends, former teachers and people who just heard about the event through word of mouth, the competitive nature was tempered with a light-hearted atmosphere. This was also due to the witty presenting from MC on the night, Alan O’Neill, a former teacher of Ryan’s.

Astonishingly, the young man reached his goal from just the table quiz alone as he collected entry fees, raffle ticket purchases, sponsorships from local businesses and donations from people who couldn’t make it on the night.

Ryan is grateful to all who donated or aided in reaching his target early. With extra time to spare, anticipation must be running through his body, but one thing is for sure: a community in Honduras will be grateful for Shaun Ryan and his contributors.

Brein McGinn